From source to solution: Addressing microplastic pollution through advanced remediation strategies

Microplastic (MP) pollution is a pressing global environmental challenge with potentially severe and long-lasting consequences. The breakdown of plastics from manufacturing industries can release tiny particles into various environmental compartments. These plastics leach into soil, water, and air, thereby reaching humans through ingestion, inhalation, and dermal pathways. Multiple organ systems, including the respiratory, digestive, reproductive, and dermal systems, suffer damage due to their constant exposure. The accumulation of them in organs can cause endocrine disruption, inflammation, DNA damage, and oxidative stress, resulting in serious long-term health effects. Despite the vast number of scientific studies conducted in the past decade on MPs, a comprehensive overview of their origins, environmental transport, health effects, and removal methods is still lacking. Therefore, this review has attempted to deliver recent updates by reviewing the latest literature to fill these gaps. It has also highlighted the different remediation strategies used for the removal of MPs, including physical, chemical, biological, and nanotechnological approaches, with their advantages and disadvantages. Among the advanced technologies, nanotechnological methods utilizing bionanomaterials were found to have significant potential due to their ease of use, cost-effectiveness, simple manufacture, and potential for scale-up. This review proposes the idea of integrating biomaterials with nanotechnology as a promising approach for addressing MP pollution using the processes of adsorption and photodegradation. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of a multifaceted approach involving scientific innovation, policy intervention, and societal awareness to comprehensively address the issue of MP pollution.